Hair drying apparatus



p 1949. J. MOISEEW DlT STONE 2,481,328

HAIR DRYING APPARATUS Filed June 13, 1947 mjww 4 TTO/7/VEY Patented Sept. 6, 1949 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Application June 13, 1947, Serial No. 754,426 In France June 18, 1946 3 Claims.

This invention relates to methods of and apparatus for drying hair by hot air for use in hair dressing rooms.

Present day apparatus for drying hair are generally constituted by a metallic helmet under which the customer takes a seat. A blower made fast to the helmet sucks up the surrounding air and discharges it, after being heated, into the helmet in which it whirls round the customer's head. This hot air, therefore, but skims over the hair without penetrating thereinto and the d ying of the mass of hair is achieved solely by capillarity.

The use of such helmets is very disagreeable to the customers on account of the excess of hot air breaking through interstices between the helmet and the customers head, whereby the forehead, face, eyes and even shoulders of the customer are undesirably affected. Furthermore, the blower driving motor gives rise to annoying vibrations and noises.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved hair dryer that shall be free from the inconveniences above referred to inherent to hair dryers hithereto employed.

According to one feature of the present invention there is provided a method of hair drying which consists substantially in confinin the hair to be dried in a yieldable bonnet supported by a crown and having at its base a plurality of air inlets and on its apex at least one air outlet, placing a helmet over said bonnet and crown so as to form an air space defined by said helmet, bonnet and crown, exhausting said air space with the aid of air exhausting means removed from said helmet and bonnet, and compelling, under the effect of said exhausting, the incoming outside air required for drying said hair to heat in said crown, flow through said air inlets into the mass of said hair under said bonnet, traverse said mass of hair while drying the same, and then flow out through said air outlet into said air space exhausted by said exhausting means.

According to a further feature of the present invention there is provided a hair dryer suitable for carrying out the above method, said dryer comprisin a removable flexible bonnet supported by a crown and adapted to confine in it the hair to be dried, said bonnet having at its base a plurality of air inlets and on its apex at least one adjustable air outlet, means carried by said crown for heating the incoming outside air required for drying said hair, means carried by said crown and bonnet for conveying the heated air to said air inlets, a removable helmet adapted to be positioned over said bonnet and crown so as to form an air space defined by said helmet, bonnet and crown, and air exhausting means removed from said helmet, bonnet and crown for exhausting said air space and thus compelling the heated air conveyed to said air inlets to, pass therethrough, traverse the mass of said hair while drying the same and then flow out through said air outlet into said air space exhausted by said air space exhausted by said exhausting means.

The dryer just referred to has many advantages over hair dryers hitherto employed: the fact that the hot air traverses the very mass of air permits to utilize the maximum of its drying capacity, avoids any losses by radiation and considerably reduces the required volume of air, wherefore the resultant current consumption and time of dryin are at least lesser. Furthermore, the bonnet may be made from a dielectric mate rial with a, view to obtaining an absolute safety in case of failure due to defective current connections. Finally, as the air exhauster is entirely independent from the helmet, any resultant noise is eliminated. On the other hand, as the bonnet separates the area of drying from the face of the customer, the latter enjoys a comfort hitherto ignored.

Further objects and features of the present invention will be apparent from the following description and appended claims.

The invention will be described with reference to the accompanying diagrammatic drawing showing by way of example a form of hair dryer according to the present invention.

Referring to the drawing, the hair dryer according to the invention comprises a crown l formed with a plurality of holes 2 through which the outside air may pass into the dryer.

This crown l is made fast to a tubular connection 3 mounted to turn on a tubular standard 5 supporting the hair dryer and suitably connected with a remote air exhauster (not shown). Against a joint piece l8 provided on the upper edge of the crown l is applied a rigid helmet 6 made fast to a bracket I! and adapted to pivot as at H. Mounted Within the crown l are heating resistances 4 suitably connected with a source of electric current (not shown).

According to the invention, the customers hair to be dried is confined in a flexible bonnet 1, Without endangering the hair trimming, which bonnet may be made for example from a suitable impermeable fabric. The bonnet carries on its base a tightening belt 8, and is provided along its belt 8 with a plurality of air inlets 9 and on its apex with a large air outlet I adjustable by means of a string II. On both sides of the air inlets 9 are arranged two flexible membranes l2, l3 hooked up as at [4, 15, respectively, so as to form with suitable inner walls of the crown I a yieldable chamber 16 adapted to receive the incoming hot air and communicate with the said inlets 9.

It is clear that under the exhausing action through the tubular standard 5 and connection 3 the outside air is drawn through the holes 2 over the resistances 4 whereby it is heated, into the chamber 16 from which the heated air is compelled to penetrate through the air inlets 9 into the mass of hair under the bonnet I and traverse this mass of hair while drying the same, whereafter the air is compelled to flow out through the outlet Ill into the space between the bonnet I and the helmet 6, from which space it is exhausted through the tubular connection 3 and standard 5.

What I claim is:

1. In a hair dryer, a removable yieldable bonnet adapted to confine in it the hair to be'dried, a removable crown supporting said bonnet, elec" tric resistances arranged in said crown for heating the incoming outside air required for drying said hair, flexible means forming an annular yieldable chamber carried by said crown and bonnet for conveying the heated air to the mass of said hair under the bonnet, a removable helmet adapted to form with said crown a closed air space over said bonnet, and air exhausting means removed from said helmet, crown and bonnet for'exhausting air from said air space and thus compelling outside air to flow over, and be heated by, said resistances, then pass through said chamber into said mass of hair under the bonnet, traverse this mass while drying the same, and finally flow out through the open apex of said bonnet into said air space exhausted by said exhausting means.

2. In a hair dryer, a removable yieldable bonnet adapted to confine in it the hair to be dried, a removable crown supporting said bonnet, electric resistances in said crown for heating the incoming outside air required for drying said hair, two oppositely lying annular membranes carried on one part by said crown and on the other part by said bonnet, forming an annular yieldable chamber for conveying the heated air to air inlets provided at the periphery of said bonnet,

a removable helmet adapted to form with said crown a closed air space over said bonnet, and air exhausting means removed from said helmet, crown and bonnet for exhausting air from said air space and thus compelling outside air to flow over, and be heated by, said resistances, then pass through said chamber and said inlets into the mass of said hair under the bonnet, traverse this mass while drying the same, and finally how out through the open apex of said bonnet into said air space exhausted by said exhausting means.

3. In a hair dryer, a removable yieldable bonnet adapted to confine in it the air to be dried, a removable crown supporting said bonnet, electric resistances arranged in said crown for heating the incoming outside air required for drying said hair, flexible means forming an annular yieldable chamber carried by said crown and bonnet for conveying the heated air to the mass of said hair under the bonnet, a removable helmet adapted to form with said crown an air space over said bonnet, a conduit leading from said air space into a tubular standard of the dryer, and air exhausting means connected with said tubular standard for exhausting air from said air space through said conduit and thus compelling outside air to flow over, and be heated by, said resistances, then pass through said chamber into said mass of hair under the bonnet, traverse this mass while drying the same, and finally flow out through the open apex of said bonnet into said air space exhausted through said conduit and tubular standard by said exhausting means.

JEAN MOISEEW DIT STONE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,504,149 Ruflio Aug. 5, 1924 1,720,301 Suter July 9, 1929 1,720,302 Suter July 9, 1929 2,074,270 Perkins Mar. 16, 1937 2,101,503 Keller Dec. 7, 1937 2,221,822 Tays Nov. 19, 1940 2,246,767 Tays June 24, 1941 2,416,788 Andrews Mar. 4, 1947 

